Off night for Terry and ten-sion is telling, Phil

EVERTON stopped 10-men Chelsea going top of the Premier League for Christmas.[>

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David Moyes’ men thought they had won it after 83 minutes when Steven Pienaar scrambled the ball in but he was offside and had also kicked the ball out of Petr Cech’s hands in netting.[>

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But the 0-0 draw means Merseyside neighbours Liverpool are still leading the way by one point.[>

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In a lively encounter John Terry was sent off after 35 minutes – and Chelsea’s players were clearly angry at the dismissal.[>

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Terry was shown red by referee Phil Dowd after his dangerous tackle on Leon Osman.[>

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And with tempers at boiling point, Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole were both booked after Alex had upended Tim Cahill just outside the area.[>

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Both Chelsea players were unhappy at the free-kick award and complained so much that Dowd showed each of them a yellow card.[>

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In the second half Michael Ballack was even booked for claiming the Everton wall wasn’t far enough back.[>

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Dowd paced it out to show they were – then booked Ballack, leaving boss Luiz Felipe Scolari laughing in astonishment.[>

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But, despite being down to 10 men, for 55 minutes, Chelsea still did their best to be adventurous.[>

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Terry’s absence left boss Scolari with some team re-shaping to be done and at half-time he brought on Branislav Ivanovic for Joe Cole with Didier Drogba replacing Nicolas Anelka.[>

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Chelsea, with that perfect run of eight wins out of eight on their travels in the league this season, had come close to scoring after just two minutes.[>

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Jose Bosingwa crossed from the right, Anelka partly connected with the ball and it ran into the path of Ashley Cole.[>

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The England defender blasted a thunderous shot goalwards from the edge of the box and goalkeeper Tim Howard did well to punch over for a corner.[>

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Scolari had resisted the temptation of pairing top scorer Anelka with Drogba up front, preferring to use Anelka as a lone striker in the first half. Everton, too, had a sole marksman in the shape of Cahill due to the long-term injuries to Yakubu and James Vaughan.[>

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But even though it was something of a one-man home attacking force, Cahill had plenty of willing team-mates who were anxious to lend a hand.[>

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Mikel Arteta lofted a dangerous free-kick right into the six-yard box but Cech collected low down.[>

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Then, after eight minutes skipper Phil Neville, making the 450th start of his career, powered a low shot in from 20 yards but Cech gathered it on the goal-line.[>

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A header from Arteta and then one from Marouane Fellaini – both yards from the goalline – gave further proof that Everton really did have a desire to attack at every opportunity.[>

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It was a similar story with the visitors, for whom Deco embarked on a mazy dribble before firing in a powerful shot on 22minutes.[>

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The ball hits Anelka’s arm before Lampard drilled the rebound over the bar but Dowd had already blown for handball.[>

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Everton almost cracked the Chelsea defence in the 43rd minute with Joseph Yobo powering a low, right- foot shot goalwards which Cech did well to clutch. [>

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And Everton increasingly gave Chelsea plenty to worry about with Fellaini proving to be quite a thorn in their side.[>

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In the 52nd minute a right wing cross from Osman saw Fellaini rise high and power an effort goalwards. But Cech managed to get himself swiftly into position to collect the header on the line.[>

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Arteta was a revelation, too, pushing the ball around well with some inch-perfect passes.[>

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But all too often, the Everton attacks came to nothing against a gritty Chelsea side that dropped back in numbers whenever danger threatened.[>

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Lampard, who was handed the captain’s armband by the departing Terry, marshalled his troops well against an increasingly attack-minded Everton.[>

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Neville orchestrated many of the Everton attacks but was quick to drop back in defence, robbing Drogba when he tried to burst through.[>

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But Drogba, playing as a lone striker, had to rely on his speed to get through against tight marking.[>

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He managed to pierce the rearguard a number of times but without scoring.[>